2014 Nationals

In case you were wondering, Margaret and Sarah…
Deuteronomy 23:4 Because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee.
=D

Oh, wow. It couldn't have been much more awful if we had known what the verse was. Good thing we told you we were picking a reference randomly.

My randomly picked verses were:
Sarah Eddy: Proverbs 15:11 Hell and destruction are before the Lord: how much more the hearts of the children of men?
Margaret Eddy: Leviticus 14:7 And he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times and shall pronounce him clean and shall let the living bird loose into the open field.

My randomly picked verse was Isaiah 13:6. ^Most of you will know what that is. ;)^

What's this random verses thing about?

I think certain people just wrote a random reference along with their signature in the BB programs :)

Whoa, that's weird. Kind of takes away the whole purpose of signing a Bible reference… :P

I think certain people just wrote a random reference along with their signature in the BB programs :)

"Certain people" meaning "Margaret Eddy". I thought it might help them remember me better, if there was any danger of them forgetting, and I was getting incredibly bored of telling people to never forget to dot all their "t"s and cross all their "i"s.
It was weird, and missed the point of signing a Bible reference, but it made it more interesting —for me.

I think certain people just wrote a random reference along with their signature in the BB programs :)

"certain people", haha. You don't have to protect us.

I put Hezekiah 6:3 on some of mine. xP

A couple questions:

First, anyone have Jenae Orluck's email? Somehow I didn't make sure to get it. :/

Second, anyone know what the numbers on the the pins on our Nats participation medals mean? Mine says 100.

1. I dunno…sorry!
2. Yeup…I asked that to one of the BB people :D It stands for the top 100 in the nation that made it to Nationals =)

That's weird, I thought it was 120. :P I guess they just assumed that usually +/-100 actually go to Nats.

I put Hezekiah 6:3 on some of mine. xP

I went to Bible Gateway and was starting to type it in, and then I was like, Wait a minute! facedesk XP

I put Hezekiah 6:3 on some of mine. xP

I went to Bible Gateway and was starting to type it in, and then I was like, Wait a minute! *facedesk* XP

Lol xD

1. I dunno...sorry! 2. Yeup...I asked that to one of the BB people :D It stands for the top 100 in the nation that made it to Nationals =)

Okay, that makes sense.

For some reason I misread it as Hosea and was like "What's so funny about Hosea 6:3…?" =P

I did the same thing at first. :P

xD When I started to look it up to make sure it was the right verse I was thinking of, then I looked at the reference better. xP "Ooohhhh…" xP

XD I had to read his comment a few times before it hit me what was wrong with it. Duh. "Hezekiah" isn't a book of the Bible! Lol XD

5 weeks ago today, and the 2014 National Bible Bee was finished.

Wow, time is passing so fast…

And yet, like Phillip said, the time will go so fast that before we know it we'll all be together again! x)

Thinking about those gathered in San Antonio today…and wishing I was among them x) Can't wait to find out how it goes! :D

Thinking about those gathered in San Antonio today...and wishing I was among them x) Can't wait to find out how it goes! :D

I'm just hoping we do find out how it goes… =P

You will! Eventually… :P

Esther, do you still need Jenae's email? I just realized I have her dad's, at least.

xP

I do. That would be great!

Don't know who here is going to care, and maybe I'm the only one here who would, but I just discovered a pretty cool fact.

There's a girl/young woman who's volunteered at the Bible Bee the last several years named Melanie Pieper. I only notice her every year because she looks a lot to me like Jennifer Lawrence, who plays Katniss in the Hunger Games. Well, I was on Rapzilla.com, a website that covers just about every story in Christian hip-hop and rap, and I see her face. O_o Or at least, I think it's hers. So, I click, and I read this huge, long story about her life and how she's the biggest fan of Lecrae, Trip Lee, Andy Mineo, and all the other rappers at Reach Records. They all follow her on Twitter, and she's been to 22 concerts, they all know her by name, she knows all their birthdays, Andy Mineo was at her graduation ceremony, she's rapped on stage with Lecrae….. It's just all really cool, in my opinion.

And just to double-check that she was the same girl, I did a Google search with her name and "Bible Bee," and sure enough, she tweeted about the Bible Bee while it was going on this year. So it's her. And she's, like, a mini-celebrity on Twitter. XD I'll have to say hi to her if she's at Nats the next time I'm there. =P

Here's a link to her Twitter page, for anyone who may think they'd recognize her: https://twitter.com/1LecraeFan

And here's a link to the story about her: http://rapzilla.com/rz/features/9453-how-lecrae-116-clique-became-melanie-pieper-fans

Hey, That's pretty cool! :)

That is cool.

That's cool. :)

That's really awesome. Rapped on stage with Lecrae O___O. I think I know her mom; she was interviewing a lot of the finalists, and I'm pretty sure she's the one who writes the vignettes in the Sword Study.

Oh, you're right! That's why I recognize the last name Pieper… Her Twitter feed implied that she's really good friends with Hunter McMahan, so that would totally make sense.

That's really awesome. Rapped on stage with Lecrae O___O. I think I know her mom; she was interviewing a lot of the finalists, and I'm pretty sure she's the one who writes the vignettes in the Sword Study.

What are vignettes?? :-/

That's really awesome. Rapped on stage with Lecrae O___O. I think I know her mom; she was interviewing a lot of the finalists, and I'm pretty sure she's the one who writes the vignettes in the Sword Study.

What are vignettes?? :-/

It's like a drawing or illustration that shades off at the edges without a sharp border (which you see a lot of in the Sword Studies).

That's really awesome. Rapped on stage with Lecrae O___O. I think I know her mom; she was interviewing a lot of the finalists, and I'm pretty sure she's the one who writes the vignettes in the Sword Study.

What are vignettes?? :-/

It's like a drawing or illustration that shades off at the edges without a sharp border (which you see a lot of in the Sword Studies).

Oh, So that's what those are called! Thanks! x)

That. Is. Sickening.

What a way to burst my bubble.

Last night, I came home from singing one of the most beautiful collections of music ever written, with the last heavenly 'Amens' rining in my ears.

And then I read THIS.

It was like a punch in the gut.

Guys, it concerns me- no, scares me- that something that is as huge a part of my life as the Bible Bee can harbor something so horrible.

Must I even leave Bible Bee for *conscience's* sake?

I hope not.

Um, what is the Bible Bee harboring that is so horrible?

Catering to the world, which is most evident in, but not excluded to, their music. And if you want to know why I think rock/rap/etc is purely evil, part of it is that I can feel the evil. What I am wondering, is, does no one else feel when Satan is in close proximity? Is my family the only one that can sense spiritual warfare going on? Everyone thinks this is so great, and a lot of other similar things, but all I see is Satan standing there, gaining another victory that isn't even subtle. Satan has such a hold on our culture that most people can't even see how much he has pervaded it. I had never been in the culture of the world until a couple years ago, and I could plainly see Satan written over nearly everything about America, yet no one else seems to see it. Peoples! Don't you be blinded as well! You've memorized so much Scripture, you've studied God's word so deeply; can't you tell what is not of Him?

Perhaps the reason that nobody else seems to sense "Satan's presence" when you do is because you're not sensing Satan's presence at all, but are imagining that you do. Do you honestly base so much purely on your feelings? I know Scripture. I know a lot of Scripture. Show me from Scripture that rap is of the devil.

What do you even know about rap? What do you know about the amazing ministry that is being spread throughout the country by some extremely solidly biblical Christian rap artists?

I'm sorry if I'm sounding harsh, but the only reason I can see that you're calling rap purely "Satan's work" is that you feel that it's wrong. I don't trust my feelings unless they're backed up by Scripture. Please, please, please, use Scripture if you're going to oppose something that I believe is a work of God, not Satan.

Okay… Please answer my question though. If I'm interpreting this correctly, you may want to leave Bible Bee just because ONE of their volunteers likes rap? Are you being serious or are you purposefully exaggerating? And are you saying that Bible Bee is catering to the world? Sorry if I'm missing something; I don't really understand your view.

I agree with Nicolas. Can you prove from the Bible that Christian rap is of the devil? I agree that there are a lot of bad rappers out there that promote things of the flesh. But that's worldly rap; Christian rap is different. Have you heard about people who have been touched by it before concluding that it is of the devil? Would you go up to a fellow Christian who's heart is to share the Gospel and tell him that he is an instrument of Satan because he raps? You are expressing your belief, and I respect that. But beliefs on a subject should not be based on feelings because we are sinful creatures. They should only be based on God's Word. So once again, please prove from the Bible that rap is sinful and of the devil.

I had never been in the culture of the world until a couple years ago, and I could plainly see Satan written over nearly everything about America, yet no one else seems to see it.

Can you give examples of those things (out of curiosity)?

That's really awesome. Rapped on stage with Lecrae O___O. I think I know her mom; she was interviewing a lot of the finalists, and I'm pretty sure she's the one who writes the vignettes in the Sword Study.

What are vignettes?? :-/

It's like a drawing or illustration that shades off at the edges without a sharp border (which you see a lot of in the Sword Studies).

I thought it was the little stories at the beginning of every week. Or, on second thought, perhaps it is a kind of salad dressing.

That's really awesome. Rapped on stage with Lecrae O___O. I think I know her mom; she was interviewing a lot of the finalists, and I'm pretty sure she's the one who writes the vignettes in the Sword Study.

What are vignettes?? :-/

It's like a drawing or illustration that shades off at the edges without a sharp border (which you see a lot of in the Sword Studies).

I thought it was the little stories at the beginning of every week. Or, on second thought, perhaps it is a kind of salad dressing.

That is what Christian said, but I had looked it up in a dictionary to confirm that I had my definition right, and that's what it said too. I don't know - I'm probably wrong. Especially since the front of the SS all say that the illustrations were done by Doug McGuire. You know, I'm thinking that he was referring to the little stories at the beginning of each week, vignettes just wasn't the right word. ?

1. It's not just one volunteer. It's the majority of the people, particularly staff. Have you listened to the musical scriptures CD in recent years, any time since 2011? But it's not just the music I'm concerned about, either.

2. Okay. What is one of the things that most defines a culture? Well, there's clothing, religion, and music. I'm fairly confident that we all agree that there ae some huge problems with modern America and some people may even agree that there are huge problems with the pop culture. If you don't agree, why don't you go look at the magazine rack in the grocery store?

Pop music is one of the biggest influences in pop culture. Who are most of the celebrities? Movie stars and, as those of us not in that culture lump them all together, 'rock stars'.

And what do many modern churches look like? American Idol. They tell us it's idolatry, and we don't listen.

1 Corinthians 10:14 Flee from idolatry.

Deuteronomy 12:1-4 These are the statutes and judgments which you shall be careful to observe in the land which the Lord God of your fathers is giving you to possess, all the days that you live on the earth. 2 You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations which you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. 3 And you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and burn their wooden images with fire; you shall cut down the carved images of their gods and destroy their names from that place. 4 You shall not worship the Lord your God with such things.

Deuteronomy 12:29-32 When the Lord your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, 30 take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods? I also will dolikewise.’ 31 You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.
32 “Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.

Do a study on idolatry; it's pretty clear.

Vignette: a brief evocative description, account, or episode.

1. a small illustration or portrait photograph that fades into its background without a definite border.

Vignette: a brief evocative description, account, or episode. 2. a small illustration or portrait photograph that fades into its background without a definite border.

checks my dictionary again That is so weird that it's not in this…thanks, Rachel. :)

1. I haven't listened to their CD's recently, but I don't think their heart is to cater to the world. The Nationals choir and orchestra was very nice. I know you didn't like it, but that doesn't mean it's bad.

2. Are you referring to my second paragraph or second post?